Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes raised eyebrows with his comments to the press after the club’s 4-1 defeat to Como in the Champions League earlier this week.
The Red Devils skipper told reporters that it was a decision by Michael Carrick and the coaching staff to not press man-to-man against the Italian side, and he felt like that tactic worked against the team.
Fernandes explained that the zonal pressing structure gave Como too much room to build confidence on the ball, which then led to them playing United off the park.
Some of the Portugal international’s frustrations with the coaching staff may be borne out of his personal situation this season, as he has not been at his world-class best for the club.
Why Bruno Fernandes has struggled this season
The United captain produced a stunning performance against newly-promoted Ipswich Town back in August, scoring a hat-trick and providing one assist in a 5-2 win.
Either side of that game, though, Fernandes has scored one goal and failed to supply any assists in ten appearances in all competitions, with the one goal coming in a comfortable 4-0 win over Sabath in the Champions League.
He has not been helped by some questionable tactical decisions by Carrick, though, as he has started games on the right wing, on the left wing, and as a centre-forward this season.
|
Bruno Fernandes (PL) |
25/26 |
26/27 |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
35 |
7 |
|
Big chances created |
33 |
1 |
|
Key passes per game |
3.9 |
2.2 |
|
xA |
12.32 |
1.50 |
|
Assists |
21 |
1 |
|
Possession lost per game |
17.0 |
18.0 |
All 35 of his Premier League appearances last season came in a central position, and the difference in his statistics shows that the positional change has negatively impacted his output in the final third.
United’s return of two wins in ten league and Champions League matches suggest that Carrick’s overall coaching work is not making up for how he has derailed Fernandes’ personal form.
Man Utd can unlock Bruno Fernandes by hiring Serie A manager
One way that club could unlock the Portuguese star’s top form could be to sack their manager and hire a new coach to lead the team forward.
They have already been linked with Julian Nagelsmann and former Premier League winner Antonio Conte, but they should pursue a manager who has yet to be linked with a move to Old Trafford, Cesc Fabregas.
The former Arsenal and Chelsea central midfielder is the current first-team head coach of Como and masterminded a 4-1 win over Carrick in the Champions League this week.
He had the Italian side, who were in the Serie B as recently as the 2023/24 campaign, playing sublime football that was exciting to watch and difficult to play against.
Fabregas led Como into the Serie A and finished tenth in his first season in the Italian top-flight, before leading them to a fourth-placed finish in the division in the 2025/26 campaign.
On top of his overall success in the league, he has overseen the development of Argentine attacking midfielder Nico Paz, who plays in the number ten role in the manager’s preferred 4-2-3-1 system.
|
Nico Paz (2026/27) |
Serie A |
Champions League |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
7 |
3 |
|
xG |
2.35 |
1.16 |
|
Goals |
2 |
2 |
|
Key passes per game |
1.7 |
1.7 |
|
Big chances created |
1 |
2 |
|
Assists |
2 |
3 |
|
Successful dribbles per game |
1.9 |
2.3 |
|
Possession lost per game |
11.4 |
15.7 |
The left-footed star has racked up four goals and five assists in ten appearances in all competitions so far this season, whilst only losing possession 11.4 times per game on average in the league.
Fernandes has lost possession 5.6 more times per match on average in the Premier League, which suggests that he is not being given simple enough options on the ball, as Paz had in the 4-1 win over United.
Fabregas, who was hailed “the best coach in the world” by Como sporting director Carlalberto Ludi, has coached his side to constantly have options when they have the ball at their feet, rotating to create overloads and ways to play around the opposition at all times.
The structure that they play with, built around Paz in the number ten role, helps them to dominate and control games, whilst consistently creating high-quality chances, as they ranked fourth in the Serie A for ‘big chances’ (99) last season.
Fabregas, therefore, would unlock Fernandes and get him back to his best at Old Trafford by deploying his 4-2-3-1 formation and exclusively playing the skipper in the number ten role that Paz is currently thriving in. For that alone, he would be a better option than the aforementioned Conte and Nagelsmann.
Carrick’s tactical choices, generally and with Fernandes in particular, are evidently not working, which is why United must sack him and approach Como to see if the Spaniard can be tempted into returning to England.
